The past year has been eventful—to say the least—in the world of scientific research and academic publishing. Near constant crises, from the global pandemic to revelations about climate change to a turbulent presidential election all touched our daily lives and became the subjects of influential, fast-tracked journal articles. While much attention has been paid to an unfortunate proliferation of fake science due to current events, including our own previous blog post; peer-reviewed journals have persisted to make a positive and measurable impact, informing critical decisions about government, education, healthcare, and more. As a key partner in the scholarly information chain, we at KGL want to take a moment to spotlight some of the top (real) science stories since 2020 and how they have made an actual difference in our lives.